


A Balancing Act

by AshPhyn



Series: Teen Wolf Season 4 Stydia Tangent [1]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: F/M, mentions of stiles stilinski / malia tate
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-07-25
Updated: 2014-07-25
Packaged: 2018-02-10 08:39:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,140
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2018400
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AshPhyn/pseuds/AshPhyn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is how I keep my little Stydia shipper heart happy. These are the little things that I imagine happening alongside the main storyline. With the ups and downs for Stydia this season, this is me on a tangent sticking as close to the curves as possible.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Balancing Act

**Author's Note:**

> I can't really accept that Stiles and Scott, both of whom I truly believe love and care about Lydia, have really left her all alone as the show seems to imply, as they move on with Malia and Kira.  
> In my headcannon, they're still looking out for her and keeping an eye on her as best as they can. It's all a matter of balance.
> 
> [ Takes place sometime after 4x03 Muted. ]

"So, apparently I have a reputation."

"You what-?" Stiles said as he swung around the desk chair to look at Lydia who was sitting on her bed looking through her Maths notebook that Stiles had brought over, "Who said that?"

"Parrish. Apparently I have a reputation for showing up around dead bodies," Lydia said nonchalantly but Stiles could tell from her expression it was anything but.

He scooted the computer chair closer to her bed. He had come straight over to Lydia's after he noticed the markings in her maths notes that she'd given to Malia. He could've kicked himself for not noticing earlier. He still wasn't sure how he felt about the fact that Lydia and Parrish had essentially gone all dynamic-duo and finding the freezer full of dead bodies.

"I'm sorry you had to cut short your study time with Malia," Lydia frowned as she kept her head down. She was looking through the notebook trying to see if she could notice any pattern in the random letters and symbols scrawled across multiple pages. So far, she had only been able to figure out that the random pattern of letters and symbols eventually started to repeat again. If this was anything like her drawing of the nemeton, it was possible that she had repeated the same sequence of letters, numbers and symbols over and over again. Stiles meanwhile had been on her computer researching codes and ciphers.

Stiles sighed as he moved closer still and tipped Lydia's face up with his fingers.

"Hey," he said gently, "don't be sorry. This is more important. How are you feeling?"

Stiles was having a hard time. He and Scott had noticed that Lydia had been withdrawing from them a bit and he suspected it had a lot to do with her processing her grief and trying to adjust to the addition of Malia and Kira. He didn't dare consider that his involvement with Malia was also a factor, but he and Scott worried about her. Stiles thought Malia's improvement was encouraging but it took a lot of Stiles' free time and energy. It also didn't help that Malia was over-protective of him and wary of Lydia.

So he and Scott came up with a plan of sorts. Scott told Lydia to contact him first in case of pack-related emergencies. Stiles was not surprised at how wrong that felt to him. Lydia should be calling him first like she had been these last few months. But he still felt guilty over that one time he had accidentally missed her call when he'd been with Malia. Lydia had been fine, but what if she hadn't been? He knew Scott cared about Lydia and despite his burgeoning relationship with Kira, his super wolf hearing would mean he wouldn't miss his cell phone vibrating from her calls.  
Stiles didn't see her as often as he used to but at least once every couple of weeks, he came over to Lydia's. That was the other new thing. Malia's super sensitive were-coyote nose meant that she could always smell when Lydia had been in his room and that always put her in a mood. After a very awkward conversation, Lydia suggested he just come over to her's whenever he wanted.

The one thing that hadn't changed much was that he and Lydia still partnered together for missions. Either because they were the humans of the group (if you ignored Lydia's ability to scream at ear-splitting frequencies) or because they just worked well together. Which was probably why her little tour of the Walcott house with Parrish bothered him.

"I'm okay," Lydia smiled faintly even if it didn't quite reach her eyes, "what did you find?"

Stiles dragged the laptop over so he could show how her what he'd found about a Vignere cipher.

He felt a little ray of pride in him for Lydia as he explained what he'd found. Given the circumstances, Lydia seemed to be coping. He knew she was probably nowhere near okay but she was holding up. It was a tough balancing act for Stiles, splitting his time between the two girls. One who needed him and surprised him daily and the other one he couldn't live without. No matter how far or how long he was away from Lydia Martin, he still kept coming back to her and the look in her eyes as she smiled back at him made him wonder if she might just need him too.

Stiles who used to plan 10 years in advance, no longer thought he was capable of planning more than 2 weeks ahead. After the death of- , he just couldn't be certain of anything anymore with these crazy lives they led but he realised one thing hadn't changed. He would still not be able to live in a world where Lydia Martin did not exist.

Lydia, leaned over his shoulder as she looked at the website Stiles was showing her. She was only half-listening. She was busy soaking up whatever strength she could from being around Stiles and having him completely to herself without any were-coyote or anyone else really, interrupting. She'll need this for the coming days she'd have to struggle to get through as she repeated to herself that she was ok until he next came to her.  
The boys seemed to be moving on and she was happy for them, she really was. But Lydia hadn't moved on yet. This time she was going to take her time and go through it slowly and painfully. The last time she tried to move on quickly and distract herself, Aiden happened. This time, she owed it to her ex-lover and her best friend, who was more like a sister, to take the time to heal even though she knew the ache would never really go away.

"Penny for your thoughts, Miss Martin?" Stiles asked when he noticed Lydia wasn't really paying attention. He turned and placed his hand over hers on her lap. Right before his stomach rumbled.

Lydia laughed as she stood up from her bed and dragged Stiles by his hand out of her room.

"I was thinking what a miracle it was that you'd gone more an hour without food," Lydia teased, "C'mon, I think we've got some left over pizza."

"Really?? Lydia, you're amazing." Stiles said earnestly as he looked into her eyes.

Lydia ignored the way her heart skipped a beat and wrapped her hand more tightly around his before replying easily.

"Of course I am."

Allison smiled as she watched the two teenagers laugh as they went down the stairs. She knew it would take time before her two friends healed enough and that they still had hurdles to cross, but Allison wasn't going to lose hope. She knew it would happen. Just like she always had.


End file.
